DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — Normally frigid Lake Superior has warmed up faster than usual this summer. Researchers at the University of Minnesota Duluth say that’s due to a winter with little ice and a record-warm spring.

They say surface water temperatures are already about 20 degrees higher than normal at one buoy in western Lake Superior. And they say water temperatures could reach a record high by mid-August.

That’s good news for people who want to swim in Superior’s typically bone-chilling waters, but the long-term implications aren’t clear. It could mean a more fertile lake with more organisms that thrive in warmer conditions. But lake trout may have to move deeper or further offshore.

The warmer water also means warmer breezes on shore.

http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/climate

Posted 7/9/2010